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fiftlGANTINE BEACH. 

AT LOW TIDE 



No. 38 South Third Street, 
^— <5;fePHIl^DELPHIA. 
:North Atlantic City.z;^^ 
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Br^IGANfFINE BeAGH, 

NEW JERSEY 




Proposed Bridge over Absecon Inlet, North Atlantic City Railway Co. 

Brigantine Improvement Co. 

OFFINGS: 

No. 38 South Tljird Street, PMladelpMa ; North iitlautic gity, New Jersey. 



I MAY 23 1881 

A: V No..1.Cl.i.te..>Vv 

NTING HOUSfr, ^^ n - ' >^ 



PHILADELPHI 

ALLEN, LANE & SCOTT'S PRINT 

229-231 South Fifth Street. 
1881. 






X 



Entered, according to act of Congress, in the year 1881, by the 



BRIGANTINE IMPBOVEMENT COMPANY, 



In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. 0. 



Oppigei^s. 



PRESIDENT, 

ISAAC A. BRADDOCK. 

VICE-PRESIDENT, 

GEORGE W. STEEVER. 

SECRETARY, 

DAVID B. HEDLEY. 

TREASURER, 

WILLIAM SMEDLEY. 



DlI^EGTOI^S 



Isaac A. Braddock, 
George W. Steever, 
William Smedley, . 
Edward Z. Collings, 
John H. Schreiner, 
J. Curtis Davis, 
John M. Kennedy, Jr., 
David B. Hedley, . 
Richard Griffith, , 



Haddonfield, N. J. 
Philadelphia, Pa. 

Camden, N. J. 
Philadelphia, Pa. 
Kirkwood, N. J. 
Philadelphia, Pa. 



NORTH ATLANTIC CITY, BRIGANTINE BEACH, N. J. 



One of the most encouraging evidences of the growth of 
the American people in the refinements of civilization, is 
the increasing desire of the masses to give to rest and recrea- 
tion a portion of the time formerly devoted to the unceas- 
ing pursuit of wealth. Every year the number of vis- 
itors to our summer resorts grows larger, and every year the 
conviction becomes more widespread that the time thus 
devoted to recuperation from the fatigues and cares of busi- 
ness and home is well and profitably spent. 

With all these seekers after rest, pleasure, and health, the 
sea-side is the most jjopular resort. Wearied with labor and 
tired of the hot, sweltering city, they long for the cool 
breezes of the ocean, and gladly exchange the heated streets 
for the vast blue expanse of the sea, the dashing waves, and 
the invigorating salt breeze. No one who has made the 
journey to the sea-shore on a warm day, can have failed to 
notice the change in his fellow-passengers the moment the 
ocean appears in view. The weary, jaded air gives way to 
a liveliness that seems born of the cool, salt breeze, the eye 
glows with a more vigorous light, and all seem imbued with 
new life and spirits. And once established in comfortable 
quarters at the shore, how delightful it is to give one's self 
up to the enjoyment of the j)lace ; to ride or stroll along the 
beach, or to lie idly on the sands and give way to the pleasure 
of perfect rest and idleness. Such an enjoyment causes one 
to echo the beautiful lines of the good Quaker poet : — 

" Good-bye to pain and care ! I take 

Mine ease to-day ; 

Here, where the sunny waters break, 

And ripples this keen breeze, I shake 

All burdens from the heart, all dreary thoughts away. 

Ha ! like a kind hand on my brow 

Comes this fresh breeze, 

Cooling its dull and feverish glow ; 

While through my being seems to flow 

The breath of a new life, the healing of the seas." 



6 

During the past three years the number of visitors to our 
sea-side resorts has been larger than at any previous period 
of their history. The hotels and cottages have been taxed 
to their utmost capacity to 2>rovide for their guests, and 
during the summer of 1880 it was no uncommon sight, at 
any of our sea-side resorts, to see hundreds of visitors wan- 
dering about, from house to house, in search of accommoda- 
tions which could not be provided. 

The visitors to the sea-shore embrace representatives from 
all parts of our country, for our excellent railway system 
has so annihilated time and distance that the sea is now 
within easy reach of the dwellers in the most inland States. 
During the past four years the number of Western and 
Southern visitors to the sea-coast of New Jersey has been 
steadily increasing, and bids fair to grow from year to year. 
Those who experience for themselves the pleasures of a 
sojourn at the sea-side are sure to relate their experience to 
their friends on their return home, and the next summer 
sees a larger throng of travelers to the sea. 

Although the coast line of the United States is of im- 
mense length, there are but a very few points on it well 
adapted to the needs of a summer resort. North of New- 
port, the coast is subject to sudden changes of temperature, 
very trying to persons of weak constitution, and all the New 
England resorts have an atmosphere which is more or less 
damp. South of the Delaware the summers, even on the 
sea-shore, are hot and enervating. The New Jersey coast, 
situated midway between these extremes, combines more 
advantages than any portion of our Atlantic coast. It pos- 
sesses a dry, balmy, and invigorating atmosphere, a beach 
unequaled for bathing, and offers advantages for fishing 
and shooting such as can not be found elsewhere. Being 
within a slight distance of the great cities of New York, 
Philadelphia, and Baltimore, at which the great trunk lines 
of railway from the West and South terminate, it can be 
reached with ease and speed from all parts of the United 
States. Yet were this not the case, the population of the 



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0lH1N0ir>« 



PARLOR 



^"FLOOi^ 



BET3R00M 



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fieoRoow 



2- FLOOR, 




O. Kenned]/, Arehitttt, 



Des\gn for Sea-side Cottage, No. 1, 



8 

seaboard States would be amply sufficient to support the nu- 
merous resorts that are springing up along this coast. The 
States of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, 
Maryland, and Virginia possess a population of over thir- 
teen millions, and are all within from three to twenty-four 
hours' ride of the New Jersey coast. Within their limits 
are situated the chief cities of the Union, containing over 
five millions of people. Thus one-fourth of the population 
and one-half of the wealth of the entire country are within 
less than a day's ride of the most favored and the most 
popular section of the Atlantic coast. Every season hun- 
dreds of thousands of visitors resort to this region, and thou- 
sands are yearly establishing for themselves houses of their 
own to which they can repair from summer to summer 
without incurring the great expense of a stay at the hotels. 

Although the New Jersey coast possesses all the advan- 
tages desirable for a watering-place, it must not be supposed 
that all the establishments which have sprung up along it 
are equally favored. Very few can boast all that one could 
desire. At some places, while the bathing is excellent the 
drives are limited, or, where both of these pleasures are to 
be had, the water is bad, or the facilities for sailing, fishing, 
or gunning are indifferent. There has, therefore, been a 
genuine and widespread demand for a watering-place which 
shall combine all these advantages, and give to the transient 
visitor, as well as to the summer resident, the greatest amount 
of comfort and pleasure at the lowest cost. 

All these advantages, it is claimed, are combined in the 
new resort of North Atlantic City, on Brigantine Beach, to 
which the attention of the public is now invited. 

BRIGANTINE BEACH. 

Atlantic City lies sixty miles south-east of Philadelphia, 
in a direct line. Its northern boundary is Absecon Inlet, 
marked by one of the loftiest light-towers on the coast. Im- 
mediately north of the inlet is a magnificent stretch of sea- 



coast extending northward to Brigantine Inlet, a distance 
of six miles, and presenting one of the finest sea-fronts on 
the Atlantic. The beach is a hard, firm line of sand, rising 
high above the water, sloping gradually and gently into the 
sea, and presenting every advantage for surf-bathing. Be- 
tween the beach and the mainland of New Jersey, several 
miles distant, is a succession of inland channels, known as 
" thoroughfares," which at numerous points open into broad, 
beautiful, and sheltered bays, abounding in fish, oysters, 
crabs, and wild fowl, and furnishing room for delightful 
and safe boating and sailing excursions. From the earliest 
times Brigantine Beach has been noted for its delightful 
climate. When the adjoining portions of the coast are 
swept by the dreaded " land-breeze," Brigantine rejoices in 
the delicious coolness of the balmy winds that come in, 
fresh and bracing, from the sea. 

Here was a place every way fitted to become a first-class 
sea-side resort, yet no effort was made to improve it. At- 
lantic City, with greatly inferior advantages, sprang up and 
grew rapidly into a thriving and prosperous town, other 
resorts were begun and carried to success along the coast, 
but Brigantine Beach remained almost as it was when first 
the white man's foot trod its sands. A single hotel — the 
well-known " Smith's " — offered the only accommodations to 
visitors the Beach afforded. This was difficult of access, 
and could be reached only by means of a long sail from 
Atlantic City in a light-draught yacht. The accommoda- 
tions afforded by the hotel were of the plainest character. 
Yet, in spite of all tliis, the hotel was well known, and was 
liberally patronized, not only by sportsmen, who expect to 
" rough it," but by a large class of wealthy and cultivated 
people, who passed by the attractions of Atlantic City, and 
sought Brigantine Beach, with all its loneliness, its inaccessi- 
bility, and deficient accommodations, in order to enjoy its 
superior climate and bathing. Year after year this con- 
tinued, as the registers of " Smith's Hotel " afford ample evi- 
dence. In this prosperity of the hotel lay the secret of the fail- 
ure of Brigantine Beach to take its place among the leading 



10 

watering-places of the coast. Mr. Smith was not only 
the proprietor of the hotel, but the owner also of the greater 
portion of the Beach, and he was unwilling to sell any of 
his land lest the purchaser should open a rival hovise, and 
so deprive him of the monopoly he had held so long. It 
was not until very recently that he was induced to adopt a 
more liberal policy. 

In 1877 a number of gentlemen, w^ho had long been im- 
pressed with the advantages of Brigantine Beach as a water- 
ing-place, determined to obtain possession of the property 
and throw it open to the public. Negotiations were begun 
and continued with success during the next two years. In 
January, 1880, the " Brigantine Improvement Company " was 
formed by the gentlemen interested in the scheme, and was 
incorporated under the general law of the State of New 
Jersey. This Association purchased from the owners of the 
Beach, at various times, a tract of one thousand two hun- 
dred and seventy-nine acres, commencing at Absecon Inlet, 
and extending northward for a distance of three miles, and 
comprising the most desirable portion of Brigantine Beach. 
Engineers were at once set to work to lay off the property 
into streets and lots, it being the intention of the company 
to establish on the site a town to be known as North Atlantic 
City. 

The scheme having attracted considerable public attention 
from the first, a light-draught steamer was placed on the 
route from Atlantic City to Brigantine in the summer of 
1879, and continued its trips during the season of 1880. By 
means of this steamer large numbers of visitors were con- 
veyed to Brigantine, and the property thus became more 
widely known. 

The surveys having been completed, the Company decided 
to formally introduce North Atlantic City to the general 
public through the medium of a public sale of .lots. The 
first sale was accordingly held on the 9th of August, 1880, 
and was well attended. One hundred and six lots were sold 
at auction to the highest bidder for cash at the end of sixty 
days from the date of the sale. Although the place was at 




S. Q. Kennedy, Architect. 



Design for Sea-side Cottage, No, 2. 



12 

the time nothing but a bare sand beach, with only a few 
stakes marking the line of the proposed streets of the future 
town, the lots commanded an average price of sixty -three 
dollars, and the total receipts of the sale were $6678. A 
second public sale was held on the same terms, on the 28th 
of August, 1880, and ninety-five lots were disposed of for 
$5327, making a total of $12,005 for the two sales. Consid- 
ering that at the time of these sales the property was abso- 
lutely without improvement, no more striking proof of the 
confidence of the public in the success of North Atlantic 
City could have been given. That this feeling was not 
merely a passing caprice, is shown by the following article, 
which appeared unsolicited in the editorial columns of the 
Philadelphia Evening Star, on the 7th of December, 1880 : — 

" With a new ' city by the sea ' at Brigantine Beach, and 
a railroad extending from Atlantic northward along the sea- 
coast to the Inlet, there is likely to be more rivalry along 
that part of the Jersey coast than has yet been seen there. 
Atlantic City has grown so rapidly, and has already obtained 
such large proportions, that her people need not be surprised 
to find capital seeking investment elsewhere in the vicinity. 
Therefore, there is every reason to anticipate a flourishing 
town on Brigantine Beach within the next ten years. 

" The ground is high, and the bathing said to be first- 
class. With such advantages there is no reason why cot- 
tages and hotels should not spring up there, as they have 
done at other places, and especially so when it is remem- 
bered that at the height of the season the hotels and board- 
ing-houses of Atlantic City are so crowded as to render so- 
journing there anything but a pleasure." 

Since the close of the season of 1880 many lots have been 
disposed of to purchasers at private sale. The Company 
enter upon the season of 1881 with the assurance that a 
very large number of lots will be sold during the coming 
summer and fall, and that at the same time the work of im- 
proving the property will be substantially begun and carried 
forward. Already the price of lots has advanced far beyond 
the highest figures of the sales of 1880, and there can be no 



13 

doubt that, after the improvements now in contemplation 
are completed, property on Brigantine Beach will command 
many times its present value. 

NORTH ATLANTIC CITY. 

North Atlantic City occupies the southern end of Brigan- 
tine Beach, and is situated immediately opposite Atlantic 
City, being separated from it by Absecon Inlet. The length 
of the new city will be from south to north, and its width 
from east to west. In front is the broad beach washed by 
the heavy surf of the Atlantic, and behind are the " thor- 
oughfares," or sheltered channels of still but navigable 
water, which extend without interruption, and afford con- 
tinuous water passage, from a little above Cape May to Bar- 
negat bay. 

The land rises from the sea to a considerable height, thus 
affording facilities for drainage unsurpassed by those of any 
place on the coast. This is an important consideration, and 
will effectually prevent dampness and its attendant evils, 
from which many improperly drained sea-side resorts have 
suffered. 

Three broad avenues, one hundred feet wide, named re- 
spectively. Ocean, Brigantine, and Beach avenues, traverse 
the entire lei%th of the city. These are intersected at 
regular intervals by cross streets, sixty feet in width. The 
building line is the westward boundary of Ocean avenue, 
the eastern or sea front of the city, and between this 
and the beach no buildings save the necessary bath-houses 
will be erected, the Company reserving the control of 
this front with a view to carrying this regulation into effect. 
The city being but three blocks in width, all parts of it 
are practically " on the sea," and near enough to enjoy the 
advantages of the ocean front. All portions will alike enjoy 
the delicious sea-breeze by which the entire Beach is swept. 

The western portion of the city fronts upon the thorough- 
fares and bays which separate Brigantine from the main 



14 

land, and commands extensive views of some of the finest 
water scenery on the New Jersey coast. 

MEANS OF ACCESS. 

Three lines of railroad connect Atlantic City with Phila- 
delphia. These are the Camden and Atlantic, the West Jer- 
sey, and the Philadelphia and Atlantic City (narrow-gauge) 
Railways. The distance is sixty miles, and the fast express 
trains make the run from Camden to Atlantic City in ninety 
minutes. Through cars are run from Jerse}^ City, by which 
passengers from New York and intermediate points make 
the journey without change, the time from New York to 
Atlantic City being about five hours. 

At present the connection between Brigatine and Atlantic 
City is made by steamer and sailing-boats. This, however, 
is merely a temporary arrangement. The Brigantine Com- 
pany, realizing the importance of quick and regular com- 
munication with Atlantic City, have begun the construction 
of a steam railway from the extreme northern end of North 
Atlantic City to a convenient point in Atlantic City, where 
a close connection will be made with the various railway 
lines entering that city, thus bringing Brigantine Beach 
within easy reach from all parts of the. country. Absecon 
Inlet will be crossed by means of a substantial railway 
bridge at the extreme southern end of the Company's prop- 
erty. When the bridge and the railway are completed, it is 
proposed to run through cars from Camden direct to North 
Atlantic City. Trains will also be run between Brigantine 
and Atlantic City, thus enabling the residents of and vis- 
itors to North Atlantic City to enjoy all the advantages of 
the older city. The work on the railway will be prosecuted 
vigorously, and it is hoped that the road will be in opera- 
tion during the early part of the coming season. This will 
remove the only obstacle to the success of North Atlantic 
City, which place will then be as easy of access as any point 
in the Union. It can not fail to have the effect of immedi- 
ately and greatly advancing the value of property on Brig- 
antine Beach. 




K O. hennedy. Architect. 



Design for Sea-side Cottage, No. 3. 



16 

HEALTHFULNESS. 

In point of healthfulness, Brigantine Beach is unsurpassed 
by any location on the Atlantic coast. The site is elevated, 
and the natural drainage excellent. The land is dry, and 
the restrictions imposed upon the builders of houses by the 
Company will preserve this quality. The atmosphere is cool 
and bracing, and at the same time balmy, dry, and invig- 
orating. The broad, health-giving ocean lies in front, and 
to the westward are wide stretches of pure salt water sepa- 
rating the beach from the mainland — not miles of meadows, 
but broad sheets of water, which cool the land breeze as it 
sweeps over them, rob it of its malaria, and send it to Brig- 
antine almost as strongly impregnated with saline proper- 
ties as the breeze that sweeps in from the blue Atlantic. The 
advantages of Atlantic City as a health resort are well 
known, and are endorsed by leading physicians of all schools 
throughout the Union. So well understood are these ad- 
vantages that Atlantic City is now not only a summer resort, 
but the principal winter resort for invalids north of Florida. 
All these advantages may be claimed for Brigantine Beach 
in an equal degree, and there can be no doubt that when 
the improvements now in progress are carried out. North 
Atlantic City will share with its older neighbor the winter 
patronage which has been steadily growing greater from 
year to year. 

THE BEACH. 

In one respect, Brigantine Beach is far superior to any 
other portion of the New Jersey coast. It is a never-changing 
beach. At other points the fierce winter storms change the 
character of the beach from year to year, forming bars, holes, 
and pools, and changing the bathing-grounds so that points 
which afford safe bathing one season are full of danger the 
next. Brigantine Beach, owing to its peculiar situation and 
its uniform slope towards the sea, is entirely free from these 
changes ; the wildest storms that sweep along the coast have 
no effect upon it. It remains the same from year to year. 
The beach is smooth and gradual, reaching out to an aver- 



17 

age of seven hundred feet, with a depth of less than six feet, 
a magnificent surf, and no perceptible undertow, rendering 
bathing absolutely safe. It is a noteworthy fact in the long 
history of Brigantine as a summer resort, that, although 
hundreds have visited the place every season and enjoyed 
its magnificent bathing, not a single life has ever been lost or 
endangered in bathing on this beach. Can as much be said for 
any sea-side resort on the coast? 

BOATING AND SAILING. 

A sea-side resort without boating and sailing advantages 
would lack one of its chief charms. Brigantine is unrivaled 
in these attractions. The western front of North Atlantic 
City borders the safe and sheltered inland bays which separate 
Brigantine from the mainland. Here the water is so smooth 
that the most inexperienced boatman may with safety ven- 
ture upon an excursion more or less extensive, according to 
his desire. A delightful sail may be enjoyed upon the beau- 
tiful waters of Grassy, Little, and Great Bays, without dan- 
ger. Nor is it necessary to make a long journey to reach 
the boats. Row-boats and sailing crafts can land at the 
western front of North Atlantic City, and within a few min- 
utes' walk of any of the streets or dwellings. Those who wish 
to enjoy a sail on the Atlantic will find scores of sailing ves- 
sels, from the three-masted schooner to the light and graceful 
" cat-boat," in Absecon Inlet, at the southern end of North 
Atlantic City. These are manned by competent and ex- 
perienced seamen, and can be engaged at moderate prices. 

FISHING AND CRABBING. 

The bay abounds in the finest fish, oysters, and crabs. A 
sail or a row of a few minutes from North Atlantic City 
brings the visitor to the most famous fishing and crabbing 
grounds on the coast; Wcakfish, sheepshead, sea-bass, and 
perch abound, while of crabs there is no end. Ladies and 
children can enjoy delightful sport witliin easy reach of their 
cottages. Those who wish to engage in the more exciting 



18 

sport of blue-fishing, will find a wide field off the sea front, 
which can be readily reached from Absecon Inlet at the 
southern end of North Atlantic City. 

GUNNING. 

To the sportsman, Brigantine is well known, and offers 
many attractions ; the waters of Grassy, Little, and Great 
bays abound with game in their season, and the famous 
ducking grounds of Barnegat bay are within a day's pleasant 
sail in smooth, safe water. A writer in Scribner's Magazine 
for December, 1876, says : — " The shooting begins on the 
20th of October, the earliest birds having reached here by 
this time on their way south. The blue and green-winged 
teal are then killed in great quantities. * * * 

In this vicinity the wild celery and duck grasses flourish, 
attracting the better varieties of ducks, and in both autumn 
and spring vast numbers of canvas-backs, red -heads, wid- 
geon, teal, dippers, springtail, and brant — the latter the 
most delicious of fowl — are killed. * * * 'pj^g 
sport of the bay gunner is not confined to duck shooting, 
however, for when the ducks have disappeared the fiight of 
English snipe begins, and during the months of May, July, 
August, and September, all of the bathing season, the bay 
snipes appear ; and yellow legs, curlew, willett, marlin, doe- 
witches, and other varieties are shot in large numbers. 
Yacht-owners, with sporting proclivities, have here a rare 
opportunity of combining their favorite pastimes of fowling 
and sailing, all at the same time. Yachts of light draft can 
enter almost any of the sounds and waters where sport is to 
be had, and in some instances may j)enetrate them for con- 
siderable distances." 

GOOD WATER. 

All sea-side resorts are compelled to rely chiefly upon the 
kindly showers of heaven for their supply of drinking 
water. This is collected as it falls upon the roofs of the 
buildings, and conveyed by pipes into cisterns sunk in the 




R. a. KenueJj, ... 



Design for Sea-side Cottage, No. 4. 



20 

ground, where it is stored for use. There is no reason why, 
with proper care, this supply should not always remain pure 
and wholesome. Unfortunately, however, the curse of most 
sea-side resorts is the bad quality of their drinking water. 
The reason is very simple — the sinks and cesspools of these 
j)laces are usually sunk into the ground without being pro- 
tected by properly-constructed walls. Their contents are 
speedily absorbed by the sandy and porous soil, and find 
their way at length into the wells and cisterns in which the 
drinking water is kept, thus poisoning them and rendering 
them sources of disease and death. Even if the cisterns 
escape, which is rare, as they are separated by but short dis- 
tances from the sinks, the soil is everywhere saturated with 
the refuse matter which rises to the surface in the form of 
noxious vapors which poison the atmosphere and scatter 
the seeds of sickness and death on every hand. 

"Warned b}^ the experience of other j^laces, the Company 
intend that North Atlantic Cit}^ shall not suffer from this 
evil. Each purchaser of a lot, or lots, is required to bind 
himself by a clause in his deed that all sinks and cesspools 
on his property shall be walled in brick and strongly 
cemented, or lined with iron, and that the contents thereof 
shall be removed at regular stated periods. A failure to 
comply with this wise regulation is punished by the abso- 
lute forfeiture of the purchase. The Company retain in 
their own hands the supervision of this matter, and will 
rigidly enforce the regulation for the general good of the 
community. 

BAR-ROOMS. 

No purchaser of lots will be allowed to erect any building 
for the sale of intoxicating liquors within the limits of North 
Atlantic City. Nor will any establishment of a character 
opposed to good morals be allowed to exist. 

HOTELS. 

At present the only hotel upon the site of North Atlantic 
City is Smitli's Hotel, where accommodations may be had for 
a limited number of guests. Every summer, for many years 



21 

past, this house lias been taxed to its utmost capacity to ac- 
commodate the visitors that have thronged it. It is expected 
that with the growth of the town other hotels will be built 
upon a more elaborate plan. The Company offer induce- 
ments for the erection of such establishments, and with the 
certainty of a liberal patronage there can be no doubt that 
ample hotel accommodation will be provided at an early 
day. 

CHURCHES. 

With the growth of the town there is no doubt that 
churches will spring up in accordance with the wants of the 
people. At present the churches of Atlantic City afford 
ample opportunities for those who desire to engage in relig- 
ious worship. The railroad will bring the two settlements 
within fifteen minutes' ride of each other, and it will be an 
easy matter for the residents of and visitors to North Atlan- 
tic City to attend the churches of the older town. 

COST OF LIVING. 

Man}" persons are kept away from the sea-shore by an idea 
that a visit would greatly increase their expenses. This is 
a mistake, however, for actual experience has proved that a 
sojourn of a few months at the sea-shore is more economical 
than keeping house in town through the summer ; especially 
is this true in the case of a person owning his cottage. Wild 
game can be purchased in abundance, and for less than the 
cost of fresh meats and poultry in New York and Philadel- 
phia. Fish, oysters, and crabs are sold at a very low price. 
Fruits and vegetables can be had in abundance in the 
markets of Atlantic City, at reasonable prices ; and as soon 
as the growth of North Atlantic City will justify it, equally 
well-provided markets will spring up here. The fishing and 
crabbing grounds are so close to the town that those who are 
fond of such pleasures can easily, by an hour or two's sport 
each day, provide their tables, without cost, with all the fish 
and crabs needed. 



22 

All the necessities and most of the luxuries of life can be 
purchased at reasonable prices in the stores of Atlantic 
City. The proximity of this town affords Brigantine an 
advantage possessed by no other new watering-place, the 
railway making the journey between the two places only a 
matter of a few minutes. 

COTTAGES. 

It is a mistake to think that a very large outlay is neces- 
sary for the erection of a sea-shore cottage. A very comfort- 
able dwelling may be built for a moderate sum, and the 
total for taxes, interest, and insurance on the property be 
brought within a reasonable figure. A good cottage, pro- 
vided with all the necessities for and conveniences of sea- 
side life, may be built for from $800 upward, according to 
the means and tastes of the builder. It requires but a small 
additional sum to furnish it, as one does not need here the 
costly and elaborate furniture requisite for a city mansion. 

While the Company would prefer to see all the improve- 
ments on a handsome scale, purchasers will, of course, be 
free to erect such buildings as may be suited to their means 
and tastes. To those who desire it, the Company is prepared 
to furnish plans and specifications for cottages or more elab- 
orate buildings, and to enter into contracts for the speedy 
and careful erection of the same upon the most liberal 
terms. All such work will be done under the immediate 
supervision of experienced architects engaged by the Com- 
pany, and the interests of builders will be consulted through- 
out. Plans and specifications for buildings can be seen at 
the office of the Brigantine Improvement Company, No. 38 
South Third street, Philadelphia, and estimates for the 
same will be furnished upon application. 

THE TIME TO BUY LOTS. 

The best time to buy lots at North Atlantic City is now, 
before they begin to advance in price. With the opening of 
the railway to Atlantic City, Brigantine property must ap- 



23 

predate rapidly in value ; and with each successive im- 
provement, the price of desirable lots will rise. Persons in- 
tending to purchase will consult their interests by doing so 
at once, while prices are low, and before the choice lots are 
all disposed of. The advance in the price of Atlantic City 
real estate in the past ten years has been simply phenom- 
enal, and shows plainly the great popularity of this portion 
of the New Jersey coast. There is every reason to believe 
that the advance in the price of Brigantine lots will be 
equally marked and rapid. 

A PARTING WORD. 

To all who contemplate purchasing a sea-side home, the 
Brigantine Improvement Company extend a cordial invi- 
tation to visit North Atlantic City, and make a personal ex- 
amination of its advantages before purchasing elsewhere. 
We claim for Brigantine all the natural advantages pos- 
sessed by any spot on the coast, and many which are 
peculiar to this location. Among these are the following : — 

A delightful and healthy situation. 

Good natural drainage of all jmrts of the city. 

The best and safest beach on the coast. 

Unsurpassed surf-bathing. 

Ease of access from our great cities. 

A beautiful and safe bay for sailing and fishing. 

Excellent shooting in season. 

Good, pure water. 

Absolute freedom from mcdaria. 

Exemption from the dreaded "land-breeze." 

Economy of living. 

Pleasant homes to be had on easy terms. 

A more careful sanitary supervision than is customary. 

Not only are these advantages offered to those who may 
become dwellers at Brigantine, but the proximity of that 
place to Atlantic City places it within the power of all to 
share in all the pleasures, attractions, and conveniences of 



9 



24 



the older watering-place, while enjoying the greater freedom 
and j^rivacy of the new settlement of North Atlantic City. 

Again, we say that the time to purchase is now. Lots 
have aivanced in price since the summer of 1880, and are 
certain to go still higher during the present season. Pur- 
chasers are coming forward from all parts of the countr}^, 
and the majority of these express their intention to com- 
mence the erection of cottages at an early day. There can 
be no doubt that the next five years will see a large and 
handsome town on Brigantine Beach. Those who buy early 
will secure not only the choicest lots, but reap the greatest 
advantage from the increase in the value of the property. 

Further information will be cheerfully furnished at the 
offices of the Company, No. 38 South Third street, Phila- 
delphia, and at North Atlantic City, where a large map of the 
Beach and an elaborate plan of the proposed city can be 
•examined. 

Briciantine Improvement Company. 

May 10th, 1881. 




